Invention of automatic movement and dynamic positioning control method of unmanned surface vehicle for core sampling

In recent years, unmanned surface vehicles that navigate autonomously have been actively studied. Many of these vehicles are designed to perform unmanned tasks such as observation and transportation. On the other hand, this study uses an unmanned surface vehicle with a moon pool to collect a core sample on the seafloor, which is difficult to be done by an ordinary vehicle. Since the area where the vehicle is used has large disturbance by wind, it is necessary to maintain a fixed point and heading during core sampling. The vehicle is equipped with side thrusters, which enable it to hold a fixed point and heading. In this study, a control method is devised for maintaining the fixed point and heading. The control method is based on the sliding mode control, which is robust against disturbance. The proposed control method was verified by simulations and actual sea tests, and it was confirmed that the desired behavior could be achieved.